All UK policy articles – Page 5
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Rail Business UKTramway crossing accident investigation prompts safety guidance
UK: The Light Rail Safety & Standards Board has developed a comprehensive guide to road safety audits in response to an investigation into a collision on the Manchester Metrolink light rail network.
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Rail Business UKCall for consensus on infrastructure investment in northern England
UK: The Trades Union Congress and Northern Powerhouse Partnership group of business and civic leaders have called for a cross-party consensus on infrastructure investment.
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Rail Business UKInterview: ‘It’s time to bring back dynamism’
UK: Cost control, revenue growth and a competitive dynamic will be key to securing the future of the UK rail sector, Transport UK Group Chief Executive Dominic Booth explains to Tony Miles.
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Rail Business UKUK rail freight still playing catch-up, warns Shoveller
UK: Britain’s rail freight sector has work to do to catch up with road haulage in the race to digitalise its operations, according to Tim Shoveller, CEO of Freightliner’s parent company Genesee & Wyoming’s UK and European operations.
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Rail Business UKEast West Rail and West Yorkshire mass transit mentioned in Autumn Statement
UK: The government said in its Autumn Statement that it is continuing to progress with the East West Rail scheme linking Oxford and Cambridge and is to provide £2·5bn for a West Yorkshire mass transit network.
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Metro Report InternationalFunding uncertainty puts London Underground’s Piccadilly and Bakerloo modernisation plans at risk
UK: Securing £500m of government grant funding to pay for major projects in 2024-25 is critical for the future of the London Underground, according to Transport for London Chief Capital Officer Stuart Harvey. Speaking in Germany when the first of 94 new Piccadilly Line trains ...
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NewsMerseyside rail devolution MoU signed
UK: A memorandum of understanding has been signed for discussions which could lead to further devolution of control of the rail network in Merseyside and collaboration to deliver a ‘fully integrated’ public transport system. The MoU was signed on November 16 by Secretary of State ...
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Rail Business UKHopes rise that MoU could end RMT industrial action
UK: Following further negotiations between Rail Delivery Group and the RMT trade union, a memorandum of understanding has been developed which could see an end to the long-running industrial dispute. The MoU announced on November 8 sets out a process for a mutually agreed way forward, ...
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Rail Business UKDisappointment as railway reform bill now unlikely before election
UK: The government’s decision to publish a draft rather than full railway reform bill is a missed opportunity, rail industry bodies said following the King’s Speech at the opening of Parliament on November 7. The government said that given the scale and complexity of the planned ...
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Rail Business UKCILT publishes 10-point plan after cancellation of HS2 Phase 2
UK: The Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport has published 10 points setting out what it would like to see following the cancellation of further phases of High Speed 2, which it was ‘deeply disappointed’ by. CILT recommends: 1. a well-informed independent inquiry should be set ...
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Rail Business UKRIA outlines priorities for Midlands & Eastern rail suppliers
UK: The Railway Industry Association’s Midlands & Eastern division has published a paper setting out four priorities for the region’s rail suppliers, emphasising that suppliers are keen to work with regional stakeholders to unlock projects that are due to be funded through the Levelling Up and ...
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In depthComment: UK turns its back on rail growth
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s decision to abandon the remaining phases of the High Speed 2 programme reflects the UK government’s growing antipathy to rail investment and equivocation about climate targets, leaving Britain’s railway without a clear plan for future expansion.
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Rail Business UKNational Audit Office to look at East West Rail
UK: The National Audit Office has launched an investigation into the East West Rail project to develop a rail corridor between Oxford and Cambridge. Passenger services on the reopened route from Oxford to Bletchley and Milton Keynes are now expected to begin by 2025, and a ...
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Rail Business UKTicket office closure proposals scrapped after passenger watchdogs object
UK: The government has asked train operators to withdraw proposals to close most station ticket offices in England, after watchdog bodies Transport Focus and London TravelWatch formally objected. Announcing the decision on October 31, Transport Secretary Mark Harper said the government would ‘continue our work to ...
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Rail Business UKLondon Day Travelcards saved
UK: An agreement has been reached to continue the sale of Day Travelcards, which offer unlimited travel on most public transport in London and can be bought in combination with rail tickets to the capital from elsewhere. ‘The offer now on the table saves a much-valued ...
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Rail Business UKTicket office closure proposals go too far, too fast, says Transport Committee
UK: The House of Commons Transport Committee has written to Rail Minister Huw Merriman saying proposals to close station ticket offices ‘go too far and too fast’, and risk excluding travellers with access needs. The Committee says any proposed changes should be carefully piloted to understand ...
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Rail Business UKInterview: Rethinking ‘unusual and special’ CrossCountry
UK: CrossCountry’s National Rail Contract came into force on October 15, giving the business some medium-term certainty and Managing Director Tom Joyner a chance to reflect with Rail Business UK on its evolving role as a truly national train operator.
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Rail Business UKHS1 Ltd issues manifesto for rail growth
UK: Channel Tunnel to London high speed line concessionaire HS1 Ltd has published a nine-point manifesto setting out policy interventions that it says the next government needs to make ‘to ensure the UK’s rail system is fit for the future’. These are to: capitalise on the ...
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Rail Business UKViewpoint: ‘Provocative’ industrial relations measures put rail recovery at risk
The exclusion of striking workers from Network Rail’s bonus scheme and the introduction of the Minimum Service Levels Act are not going to have a positive impact on industrial relations in the rail industry, argues Stephen Morrall, Consultant at Hunters Law LLP.
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Rail Business UKRemaining phases of High Speed 2 cancelled
UK: Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced the cancellation of the parts of the High Speed 2 rail programme not already under construction.